When Norti Bai, sarpanch of Harmara in Rajasthan, refused to give into the demands of upper caste men in her village, her daughter-in-lawRam Peari was branded a "witch." The villagers called for Peari's"social boycott" and excommunication.

In Alwar district in the State, Sunita Bairwa of Bahedakhah wasassaulted because the upper castes were unhappy about a Dalit beingelevated to sarpanch.

These and similar testimonies were shared at a day-long public hearingon caste bias and atrocities faced by Dalit elected representatives,held here on Tuesday. Organised by the All-India Dalit Mahila AdhikarManch, the event highlighted the stories of discrimination andviolence against Dalit women elected representatives from in Bihar,Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

"It took us days to get the police to file a complaint. I wasvictimised because we are from the lower caste and my mother-in-lawwas doing some good work for the village. The upper caste men couldnot tolerate it, they wanted her to toe their line and when sherefused to, they accused me of being a witch and of performing blackmagic on another woman," said Ram Peari.

Most elected representatives facing harassment complained that thepolice and the administration were also not supporting them. "Aschairperson of the district council of Aurangabad, I am not even keptinformed of the day-to-day functioning. When I raise important issues,I am told that because of my caste, I will not even be heard,"complained Ranju Devi from Bihar.

In her village, she alleged, her husband was beaten up by upper castemen who objected to her candidature.

No change in status

Syeda Hameed, Member, Planning Commission, who addressed the hearing,said the status of the Dalit women representative was same as it wasyears ago. The Centre and State governments would have to workcollectively for the empowerment of Dalit women and there was need fora multisectoral approach to development and proper implementation ofpolicies, she said.

Following the testimonies, a jury put forth certain recommendations.They called for establishing a special office in each district to actas a support mechanism for Dalit, Adivasi and women panchayatpresidents. The office should provide advice, training and informationas well as monitor the performance of duties and interventions byothers such as panchayat members and government officials.

The special office should mediate and resolve problems encountered bypanchayat representatives.

In another recommendation, the jury said the State ElectionCommissions should set up a fund to provide basic financial supporttowards election cost to Dalits, Adivasis and women in general fallingwithin a stipulated low household income bracket.

It called for setting up an autonomous statutory directorate for allreserved panchayats at the State level, headed by a Dalit, Adivasiwoman IAS officer, and assistant directorates at the district level,headed by a Dalit/Adivasi woman officer below the rank of IAS, tofunction under the directorate. These two institutions should fallunder the jurisdiction of the Legislative Assembly through theGovernor. They should monitor and review the pre and post-electionperformance of the reserved panchayats, and submit annual reports tothe Assembly.

The jury called for mandating the National and State Scheduled Caste,Scheduled Tribe and Women's Commissions with sufficient powers, fundsand staff to specifically inquire into political obstruction orviolence committed against Dalit women and men, Adivasis and otherwomen elected representatives.

A resolution to strengthen the legal framework such as the SC/ST (POA)Act, 1989, and enforcement agencies particularly those focussing onDalit women was passed.